The project design also changed over time, shifting from having some off-road paths to simply bike lanes and bike routes. The latter are being employed on roads that are too narrow for bike lanes.

In the meantime, the wildly successful Tour de Troit has generated additional funds for the project to keep pushing it forward.

Safety Grants

There’s one other piece. The city of Detroit applied for an MDOT grant to improve safety along a portion of West Vernor from Livernois to Waterman. As a result, the city is adding bike lanes along that one mile of Vernor. They’re also adding lighting beneath the viaduct just west of Livernois.

When completed, there will be 24 miles of new bike lanes and 11 miles of signed bike routes.

Building on this success, the city recently applied for seven safety grants and received six. The city is looking to add bike lanes to all six projects in 2012, which includes roads such as Central and West Chicago.

Bike parking, directional signs, and more

And there are additional projects which complement this work.

There are new bike racks being installed throughout the area by a handful of different groups. Have you seen the new cool bike racks at Clark Park? They’re across the street from Cafe con Leche.

Also, the SDBA is also looking at wayfinding — signs and maps that help guide bicyclists through the area. For example, a sign might provide bicyclists with direction and mileage on how to get to specific destinations like downtown, the RiverWalk, Roosevelt Park, and Patton Park. The posted mileage also reminds those who don’t bike just how close some places are — and that perhaps bicycling between them is easier than they may have thought.

This wayfinding project is looking to develop designs that can be used across the city, which would help keep signs more consistent.

6 Responses to “New bikes lanes in Corktown and Southwest Detroit”

this is great stuff!! in corktown, we were really lucky to get a kresge grant to begin the ceation of a non-motorized transportation plan for our community. we are in the process of installing bike racks throughout corktown. we will also install wayfinding signs throughout our community and at the borders of our adjacent neighborhoods to promote biking by making it easier to know where you are going and how far away it is. we’re seeking to build the connections between corktown and woodbridge and sw detroit / mexicantown and downtown.

if you’d like to help with this or with other plans to create an amazing sustainable (energy / food secure) detroit community then please do not hesitate to send me an email. debruyn.jeff@gmail.com

[…] Without sponsors, not only would the Tour de Troit be incredibly cost-prohibitive, but the event would not be able to fund cool things like the Southwest Detroit Greenlink, which has increased the bike-ability of the neighborhoods of Corktown, Hubbard-Richard, Hubbard Farms and Springwells Village by a factor of 16.2 (miles, that is!). Details at M-Bike. […]